Support Groups for Adult Kids

Adult Children of AlcoholicsWelcome to ACA. Adult Children of Alcoholics is an anonymous Twelve Step program of women and men who grew up in an alcoholic or otherwise dysfunctional homes. We meet with each other in a mutually respectful, safe environment and acknowledge our common experiences. We discover how childhood affected us in the past and influences us in the present. We take positive action.

Adult Children of Narcissistic ParentsA discussion group on Yahoo. The group is restricted and self moderated. It is "intended to be a nurturing place for learning, validation, and thoughtful discussion."

Estranged From My ParentsDr. Joshua Coleman's forum for adult children estranged from their parents. Coleman is a speaker, psychologist and author of When Parents Hurt and other books.

Support Groups for Parents

Parents Who Walk AwayA group for parents of estranged adult children who are tired of waiting for them to grow up/get real. Comprised of strong, wise survivors, this group is made up of parents who either have walked away or are considering walking away from the disrespectful actions of their abusive adult children. Straight talk, tough stances and the free exchange of ideas/opinions can be found here. Everyone is Welcome! (Note: This is the new link to PWWA which formerly was hosted on Daily Strength.)

H. E. R. GroupsHEALING ESTRANGED RELATIONSHIPS, INC. (H.E.R. Group) was created for women who are experiencing an estranged relationship from an adult child. Our purpose is to provide each woman with a safe environment in which to share what is in her heart; and to be a place where hope, encouragement, support and resources will enable healing in her life.

Estranged StoriesA place principally for parents experiencing family estrangement to find support, hopefully peace, and some understanding. Currently has over 5,000 members.

Christian Parents of Estranged Adult ChildrenEstrangement makes it difficult to talk about with family, friends, neighbors and church members. Christians are NOT immune to broken families. Talk about your experiences with those who know how you feel and get positive support through your Christian faith. (Note: This group is the same one that had been hosted on the Daily Strength site. When DS made its recent changes, this group and others moved off of DS. This link will take you to the current location of the group.)

Support Groups for All

Al anonA Twelve Step group that offers strength and hope for friends and families of problem drinkers. There is likely a meeting near you. Learning the Twelve Steps and following them can make a great deal of difference in your life, no matter whether the issue is with someone who has a drinking problem or some other serious problem that affects them and everyone around them.

BPD CentralBPD Central Randi Kreger, author, advocate, and owner of BPDCentral.com, established Welcome to Oz in 1996 to enable family members with a borderline or narcissistic loved one to support each other and share tips and techniques.

Co-Dependents AnonymousWelcome to Co-Dependents Anonymous, a fellowship of men and women whose common purpose is to develop healthy relationships. The only requirement for membership is a desire for healthy and loving relationships. CODA is based on the Twelve Step program. It is much more broad based than Al anon.

Out of the Fog ForumOut of the FOG was launched on November 1 2007 to provide information and support to the family members and loved-ones of individuals who suffer from a personality disorder. FOG stands for Fear, Obligation and Guilt.

Counter

March 26, 2015

Is your Estranged one a professional diagnostician in their own mind?

A common experience that is talked about in a lot of groups where family estrangement is discussed is the one of being labeled with a pathological condition by the person from whom you are estranged. With their only qualifications being that they are related to you and that they knew you once upon a time, they diagnose you as being something that is generally thought to be pretty horrible. While there are people who do deserve those labels, there are a whole lot of people who do not.

I am not going to argue with anyone about the fact that there are people who are not objective about their relatives and who don't know what they are talking about when they malign them. It happens far too often. When the person maligned does not deserve what is being said about them, this behavior is abusive.

I found a very good discussion on this experience that I am linking to here:

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Related Links

Estrangements.comInformation on family estrangements including books, movies, articles, poems, a list of famous, infamous and ordinary people who have been estranged, and the Journal from 2001 to 2005.